It’s the age of mega carriers: Will Air France-KLM raise its stake in ailing...
Alitalia is fighting bankruptcy as its shareholders initiate efforts to raise funds in light of its main fuel supplier threatening to cut off supply. The Italian postal service will contribute €75...
View ArticleMove over, Ryanair, the new low-cost model is Jetstar
Reporting a net profit of €602 million (US$831 million) for the six months to end-September and despite an increase of 1% year-on-year, Ryanair yet again warned that profits are likely to fall for the...
View ArticleTigerair and Scoot ventures tell a veiled SIA story
Big and viewed largely as positive news for Singapore Airlines (SIA)’s budget subsidiaries Tigerair and Scoot when they announced expansion plans this week. Tigerair’s cautious toehold strategy in...
View ArticleSilkAir at 25, stepping out of SIA’s shadow
At 25, SilkAir is still around and growing not much or rather slowly. It has reiterated its intention to step out of Singapore Airlines’ (SIA) shadow and distinguish itself as one in its own right, but...
View ArticleTigerair’s woes deepen
Neigh, it is the year of the horse, so the tiger shall not gallop. While all indicators by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) point to a recovery of the airline industry, particularly...
View ArticleShifting sands: Singapore Airlines may introduce premium economy
Singapore Airlines (SIA) may be introducing premium economy, pending the outcome of a secret study at the airline, Aspire Aviation has learnt. While SIA has turned a cold shoulder to the proposal once...
View ArticleCompeting for dominance in Asean skies
The 10-nation bloc Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Kampuchea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam will finally see the...
View ArticleTata-SIA Airlines: Silver lining in a dark cloud?
Two big names joining hands – Indian conglomerate Tata and internationally renowned Singapore Airlines (SIA) – cannot go wrong. So it must seem. Besides, both organisations are not new to the aviation...
View ArticleCompeting to be the best: How reliable are survey readings?
Skytrax has named Cathay Pacific as the world’s best airline in 2014, displacing last year’s winner, Emirates. In second and third place are Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines (SIA) respectively....
View ArticleThe big challenge of overhauling Malaysia Airlines
Whatever form it takes, change at the beleaguered Malaysia Airlines (MAS) is inevitable. The airline suffered two tragic disasters within four months of each other. The first concerned the mysterious...
View ArticleJetstar Hong Kong’s long and costly wait to fly
Twenty-one months after Qantas announced the birth of its fifth Jetstar venture in March 2012, initially in partnership with China Eastern Airlines, the airline , Jetstar Hong Kong, has yet to receive...
View ArticleIs Qantas robbing Peter to pay Paul?
Qantas thinks it has found a way to respond to the pressure to reduce airfares in light of the hefty fall in the oil price (“A conscionable call as oil price plummets: Will airlines reduce airfares?“,...
View ArticleTigerair not out of the woods
At last Tigerair is making a profit. The Singapore budget carrier reported a positive FY2014/15 third-quarter with a profit after tax of S$2.2 million (US$1.76 million), compared to a hefty loss of...
View ArticleIs budget long-haul but a pipe dream?
Only days after announcing plans to launch transatlantic flights in five years, Ryanair retracted its position, abandoning the plans. In a statement, it said it “has not considered or approved any...
View ArticleMalaysia re-strategises: Too little, too late?
Malaysian aviation authorities are implementing new strategies to revive the fortune of the country’s beleaguered national flag carrier and its air hub standing in regional competition. Recent...
View ArticleThe hangman cometh at Malaysia Airlines
If Christoph Mueller, the new man appointed to head Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB) – renamed from Malaysian Airline System Berhad (MAS) from 1 September onwards as a new airline – appears to be a...
View ArticleDelta Air Lines extends its wings
The saga of Japan’s bankrupt Skymark Airlines has shifted attention from the plight of the damsel in distress to the competition among prospective white knights in waiting. Delta Air Lines has emerged...
View ArticleScoot to go where others failed
It will happen, as it must. So it seems, but a matter of time. Scoot, the medium to long-haul low-cost subsidiary of Singapore Airlines (SIA) has made known its intention to extend its network to...
View ArticleAirAsia loses altitude
On December 28, 2014, Indonesia AirAsia suffered the loss of an Airbus Group SE A320-200 jet which crashed after taking off from Surabaya in Indonesia for Singapore, killing 162 people on board. Then...
View ArticleCan an Emirates tie-up save Malaysia Airlines?
Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB) has signed a mega codeshare deal with Emirates Airline. The commercial partnership will allow the former access to more than 90 locations in the United States, Europe,...
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